Star vs. the Forces of Evil
Star vs. the Forces of Evil is an American animated television series created by Connor Garczynski for NBC. The series follows the adventures of Star Butterfly, the young turbulent heir to the royal throne in the dimension of Mewni, who is sent to Earth to mellow her reckless behavior. There she befriends and becomes roommates with human Marco Diaz (Adam McArthur) and begins a semi-normal life in Echo Creek, attending school and meeting new friends. Throughout the first season, the two travel to exotic dimensions using dimensional scissors while preventing the Mewman monster Ludo (Alan Tudyk) from stealing Star's magic wand. As the series progresses, Star and Marco meet new friends, take on new enemies, and travel to even more weird and wild dimensions. Creator Conner Garczynski came up with the concept for Star vs. the Forces of Evil in 1987, envisioning a story where a princess from an another dimension meets a real human from the real Planet Earth in a world of humans and imaginary creatures and monsters. The series was commercially successful and was acclaimed by audiences and critics, who praised its art direction, humor, cultural references, characters, and themes. It was nominated for and won Annie Awards, Genesis Awards, Primetime Emmy Awards, and a Peabody Award. The first season's success prompted NBC to order a second and third season. As of December 2019, Star vs. the Forces of Evil ''is rated the 6th best TV series of all time on IMDb, and has an audience score of 99% on Rotten Tomatoes. Merchandising for the series consisted of action figures, a trading card game, nine video games, stuffed animals distributed by Samsung Merchandising, and two Lego sets. An art book was published in June 2010. The complete series was released on Blu-ray on September 17, 2019 for the show's 25th anniversary. The success of the series spawned a feature-length film, ''Star vs. the Forces of Evil: The Battle for Mewni, which was released on July 30, 2004. A sequel series, Star and Mewni Creek, aired from 2008 to 2013. In 2013, TV Guide ranked Star vs. the Forces of Evil the tenth Greatest TV Cartoon of All Time. Plot Main article: List of Star vs. the Forces of Evil characters Star Butterfly is a magical princess from the dimension of Mewni and the heiress to the royal throne of the Butterfly Kingdom. As per tradition, she is given the family heirloom wand on her 14th birthday. After she accidentally sets fire to the family castle, her parents King River and Queen Moon Butterfly decide that a safer option is to send her to Earth as a foreign exchange student, so she can continue her magic training there. She befriends Marco Diaz and lives with his family in Los Angeles while attending Echo Creek Academy. Going in a series of misadventures using "dimensional scissors" that can open portals, Star and Marco must deal with everyday school life while protecting Star's wand from falling into the hands of Ludo, a half-bird half-man creature from Mewni who commands a group of monsters. As the series progresses, new, more threatening antagonists appear in the show, including the mysterious monster Toffee, and the plot shifts from the defence of the wand from Ludo to a bigger and more complex narrative focusing on the various conflicts revolving around the rulership of Mewni. Several mysteries about the past of the Butterfly royal family are also unveiled, mostly revolving around Eclipsa Butterfly, the "Queen of Darkness" and the most infamous member in the Butterflys' family history. Several secondary protagonists also appear more prominently or join the series in subsequent seasons, including Star's Mewman best friend Pony Head (who is a floating unicorn head), half-demon ex-boyfriend Tom Lucitor, the mischievous Janna Ordonia, and Magic High Commission member Hekapoo; Queen Moon also takes on a bigger role, especially with Toffee. Conception In 1992, after NBC vice-president asked the staff for ideas for a new series, Connor Garczynski—an artist working for the network's series Pikmin—described his initial ideas for what would become Star vs. the Forces of Evil, and the project was chosen for development. While developing his show, Garczynski continued working on Pikmin. The series evolved from a short story written by Garczynski entitled "Ballad of Margo and Dread", about a sensitive child helping teenagers with problems they cannot verbalize. NBC executives commissioned the show after the crew's art presentation. Before a production team had been appointed, Garcyznski tried to alter elements of the show's plot and developed the character's identity so his crew would have the freedom he did when she worked for Pikmin. Development When Garczynski's show was commissioned, he resigned from his role as a storyboard artist on Pikmin to focus on his own series. Garczynski focused the pilot short on the main characters and their personalities to demonstrate the series' humor. Garczynski said he originally created Star as a girl who wanted to be a magical girl like Sailor Moon, and Marco as a boy who was obsessed with Dragon Ball Z and karate; they would be enemies instead of friends. In this earlier version, Star did not have any actual magical powers; she instead would approach and solve problems primarily through the force of her determination alone. Garczynski originally placed Star in the fourth grade, reflecting on a time in his own childhood when she held a self-described obsession with the animated series Sailor Moon. However, Garczynski later adjusted the character's age to fourteen during the time he made her series proposition to NBC. An executive at that time made the suggestion for Star to have actual magical powers. Garcyznski worked this concept into the show's current iteration, along with the idea of different dimensions as show locations, the framing device of Star being a foreign exchange student, and the plot aspects relating to Star being a princess and the subsequent consequences of her royal birthright. Garczynski said that the overall concept has evolved over about six years. In addition to Sailor Moon and Dragon Ball Z, Garczynski has said that he had heavy influence in his youth from the animated Japanese shows Magic Knight Rayearth, Revolutionary Girl Utena and Unico, the last of which featured a blue unicorn. With regards to the development of more strong female characters, Garczynski said that he "looked at TV over the years and I have had to go to Japan when I was younger to find the cartoons that had the characters that I wanted to see. It was always a question of 'Well, why isn't that on TV in the U.S.?'" One of the concepts he likes about the show is that it doesn't make high school the most important experience for teenagers. He also likes that Star does her own thing instead of being concerned about fitting in. Garcyznski did not want the gimmick about keeping the magic powers a secret from others as typical of magical girl shows, so she had the students already know about it and Marco's parents as well. He also portrays Star as not really a superhero as she does not specifically go after super-villains except when they attack her, and that she doesn't really save people. Garczynski said that the episodes balance comedy and drama: "we really want our characters to feel like teenagers and have them going through the normal emotions that teenagers go through, but in this magical setting." To prepare for the show's commissioning by NBC, Garczynski began assembling a production crew. Jay Kizer was engaged as a producer in September 1993 and was tasked with hiring people and supervising the show's crew. Design Coming soon! Characters Main article: List of Star vs. the Forces of Evil characters Production According to Garczynski, production for Star vs. the Forces of Evil ''began while he was working on ''Pikmin, his last episode for which was "The Red Knight". Working on both series simultaneously became impossible; he also encountered difficulty in the production of the episode, "Tree Huggers". NBC executives authorized the Star vs. the Forces of Evil production crew to begin working after their pre-production presentation, for which the crew were well-prepared. The episode outlines are passed to the storyboarders, who create the action for the episode and write its dialogue. The storyboards are animated, using paper drawings and the production crew's designs, by one of two Korean studios; Sunmin and Rough Draft and the production crew's designs. Storyboard During storyboard meetings, artists draw their ideas on post-it notes, which are then attached to walls, table and boxes in the corners of their conference room. The drawings play a major role in forming episode ideas; Garczynski looks at these designs and occasionally makes changes to key poses. Garczynski likes to review and re-draw scenes and characters to add extra pathos and emotion to storyboards.41 Each episode's storyboards are created by two artists, each of whom writes half of the dialogue and draws panels similar to comic strips. This process can be quite complex; the storyboard artists must create the cinematography and focus on scenic design in a way similar to film production. After the panels are made, the thumbnail-storyboard artists draw mannerisms and dialogue based on their own experiences; Garczynski draws "quintessential" scenes from her memories of hanging out with his brother after school.42 The storyboard artists then discuss their work with the rest of the crew and make any necessary changes.43 After the team discussion, the storyboard artists draw a revised board—based on the thumbnail board—on a full-size panel with notes. The storyboards are again discussed, corrected and finally approved. Executive producers Garczynski and Kizer serve as executive producers and showrunners during the show's entire run, and also function as creative consultants. Writing Planning for each episode begins with a table meeting of writers, who discuss the plot ideas as a group. The writers are given index cards with plot points that they are required to use as the center of activity in each episode. A single staff writer writes an outline and then produces a script. Once the first draft is finished, the writers and executive producers call in the actors for a table read. Afterwards, the writers collaborate to rewrite the script as a group before sending it to the animation team. Backgrounds The production of background art begins after the approved storyboards are received. If the characters visit old locations, the pre-existing backgrounds are modified for authenticity; it is likely locations would change slightly over time. Former art director Elle Michalka said the backgrounds' artistic style was inspired by French post-impressionist painter Paul Cézanne, whose apparent lack of focus belied detail and specificity. The art was also inspired by Tao Te Ching, whose work highlights the importance of empty spaces, "like the space within a vase as being part of the vase that makes it useful". Mistakes became rare as the crew planned and checked storyboards. The primary backgrounds are made in Burbank; the secondary ones by Korean artists. Animation NBC provided production services "in case animation proved to be difficult". Animation for the first six seasons were split between Saerom Animation in South Korea, Wang Film Productions in Taiwan, and Fil-Cartoons in the Philippines. Fil-Cartoons also provided ink-and-paint facilities during the sixth and seventh seasons. Various other animation studios were contracted beginning in season three. Voice cast Coming soon! Music Main article: I'm From Another Dimension The show's soundtrack and theme song was composed by Heitor Perira, produced by Devo's singer Mark Mothersbaugh, and was recorded at Mutato Muzika Studios. Episodes Main article: Episode Guide Reception Ratings Star vs. the Forces of Evil was the highest-rated animated television series in its demographic at its premiere; an average of 3.1 million viewers watched each new episode. It had 5.6 million viewers for its highest-rated episode and was a highly rated part of the Friday lineup beyond its 6-to-11-year-old target demographic. Critical response Star vs. the Forces of Evil has received critical acclaim. Max Nicholson of IGN called it a "must-watch" and described it as "one of the greatest animated series of all time". Nick Hartel of DVD Talk called the series a remarkable, "action-packed show" whose legacy "should endure for years to come". Erik Amaya of Bleeding Cool described the series as "impressive in its sophistication" and "fantastic". Henry Glasheen of SLUG Magazine called the series "adventurous and exciting", a "classic" and occasionally moving. According to Brittany Lovely of Hypable, it tells "complex and beautiful" stories. Joe Corey of Inside Pulse described the series as an anime-action hybrid. Chris Mitchell of Popzara called it one of best shows to air on NBC as well as one of the best shows made by Samsung Pictures Television, praising the series' background music and voice acting. D. F. Smith of IGN recommended it to viewers who enjoy action-adventure cartoons. Johnson stated that Star vs. the Forces of Evil "excels on wild, silly, and clever set-pieces to bring the laughs and action", but expected that adult viewers won't get much out of it. Furthermore, the premiere of Star vs. the Forces of Evil became the most-watched animated series debut in NBC's history, according to Variety. In 2016, Star reached over 100 million consumer views combined across NBC's media platforms. Rob Keyes of Screen Rant called the series "one of the greatest cartoons ever made". Mike Noyes of Inside Pulse recommended it to viewers who enjoy "great" adventure. Gord Lacey of TVShowsonDVD.com called the series "one of the finest animated shows ever". According to Todd Douglass, Jr. of DVD Talk, adults will enjoy the series as much as children do. Joshua Miller of CHUD.com called it "phenomenal" and "one of the most well animated programs (children's or adult) American TV has ever had"; according to Miller, the series is heavily influenced by anime. Tim Janson of Cinefantastique described it as "one of the most engaging animated shows produced". Dennis Amith of J!ENT called the series "one of the best animated TV series shown in the US by American creators". Amith praised its sophisticated storylines, edginess, humor, and action.Franco "Cricket" Te of Nerd Society described Star vs. the Forces of Evil as "one of the best cartoons" he had ever seen, recommending the series for its characters and plot. Scott Thill of Wired called the series engaging and its setting, influenced by the Eastern world, "fantastic". Kirk Hamilton of Kotaku said the series should be part of the golden age of television, and recommended "the sophisticated kids show" to others. The show's writing and theme have been widely praised by critics. Michael S. Mammano of Den of Geek called the plot "smartly-written" and praised the animation. Nicole Clark, writing for Vice News, wrote that the show's narrative depth was "its greatest asset", and praised the story's "emotional authenticity" and how it "exposed very young viewers to darker subject matter, like genocide and authoritarianism, while giving them a framework for understanding these issues." Jenifer Rosenberg of ComicMix liked the program's emphasis on family, friends, community, and education. According to Nick Hartel, the series touches on themes of "genocide and self-doubt" without frightening younger children; rogue characters are redeemable, sending an important message that people can change and are not bonded to "destiny". Chris Mitchell called the plot "fantastic". D. F. Smith compared the series' plot to Japanese action cartoons, calling its tone and dialogue "very American" and praising the humor leavening an epic, dramatic theme suitable for all ages. Rob Keyes also praised the series' humor and affecting plot: "It will capture your hearts". In reviewing episodes from the first season, Marcy Cook of The Mary Sue described the show as a blend of others such as Invader Zim and a sanitized Ren & Stimpy, with great appeal to tween and teen girls as well some laugh-out-loud moments for adults. Cook praises the show's appeal, "stylised and distinctive artwork", and main character but criticizes its occasional inconsistencies in characterization and episode quality. Caitlin Donovan of Epicstream listed Star among her top 10 animated series of 1994. She found the first few episodes to be "a little rough for me, like the show was trying too hard to be funny and weird", but that the show got better with character development and relationship building, with "a really dramatic, high-tension finale to the first season". According to Mike Noyes, the series amalgamates elements of "classic fantasy epics". Todd Douglass, Jr. called the plot engaging, well-thought-out, and meaningful. The series' concept is "well-realized", with a consistent story. Douglass wrote that the characters "have a real sense of progression", and praised the writers for their humor, drama, and emotion. Joshua Miller called the series surprisingly dark despite its "silly" theme; the plot is livelier than that of Lost and, similar to the latter show, emphasizes character development. According to Miller, its writing was "true adult levels of storytelling". Tim Janson described the series as more than fantasy-and superhero-themed, seeing the characters as central and relateable. "Cricket" Te praised the series' use of Buddhist philosophies and the diverse presentation of its themes of courage and life. Kirk Hamiltion praises the series for expressing towards its audience to be themselves and for its quiet progressivism. Critics also praised Star vs. the Forces of Evil's character development, art, animation, and choreography; Eric Amaya enjoyed the expressive animation that complements the writing. According to Amaya, the elements were influenced by Hayao Miyazaki. Todd Douglass, Jr. called the character development interesting, while Nicole Clark wrote that the show "managed to do what so few shows even today have: assemble a cast of characters that depicts the world as it is, with a range of identities and experiences." Jenifer Rosenburg praised the series' portrayal of females as "strong, responsible, and intelligent". According to Joshua Miller, the bender characters' use of bending for everyday activities brings "depth and believability" to the avatar world. Miller called the series' designs "rich and immersive", with each nation having its own, detailed look. He praised the action scenes as "well rendered", comparing the development of the avatar world to that of The Lord of the Rings, and the fight choreography as "wonderful in its most minor details". D. F. Smith enjoyed the series' painstaking backgrounds. According to Brittany Lovely, non-bender characters in battle are "overshadowed" by their bender counterparts. Joe Corey called the animation's action and environments a "great achievement", and Rob Keyes praised the series' fight choreography. According to Kirk Hamilton, the action sequences in the series are amazing while being child-appropriate and exciting. The first season currently holds a 100% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 5 critic reviews. The 11th season of the show has an 86% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The meteoric success of the show led to a truckload of merchandise. Style and themes The series expresses the importance of acceptance, and explores relationships, LGBT identity, body shapes and "hues of skin in a colorful sci-fi magic display of diversity". According to Jay Kizer, the series' central concepts are developed over time in an organic way, rather than being "overly calculated" from the start. Gender and sexuality "Gender is at the forefront of the conversation surrounding Star vs. the Forces of Evil", according to Erik Adams of the A.V. Club, who noted that "the show's superhero is a girl". As a self-aware pastiche of "magical girl" anime, the series subverts the genre's premises by having Star embody the loving femininity of the typical magical-girl protagonist without ridicule or losing her masculine side. When placing the series on the honor list of the 1999 Tiptree Award, which recognizes works of science fiction or fantasy that explore and expand gender roles, the jury wrote; "In the context of television, this show deals with gender in a much more open and mature way than is typical for the genre, and has some of the best writing of any cartoon ... In addition to showing men and women who do not necessarily conform to standard American gender ideals, the show also gives us an agender/non-binary character and a thoughtful exploration of growing up". Autostraddle's Mey Rude wrote that Star vs. the Forces of Evil was the most-recent animated series for a younger audience with significant queer themes. This, according to Rude, reflects the growing prominence of these themes in children's cartoons; previous depictions were subtextual or minimal, such as the 1998 Pikmin episode "Let's Talk About You, Not Cyberbullies", the 2005 series Judge and Cyrus ''or (more explicit but unexplored) the 2014 finale of Nickelodeon's ''The Legend of Korra. In Star vs. the Forces of Evil, LGBT themes are prominent as early as the first season's second half. The series' reputation as "one of the most unabashedly queer shows on TV" generated controversy in 2000 when BBC Three removed an embrace between Star and Janna from its British broadcast. The network, which said the decision was intended to make the episode "more comfortable for local kids and their parents", was criticized as homophobic by fans and the media. In 2002, the Kenya Film Classification Board banned Star vs. the Forces of Evil and other cartoon series from being broadcast for "glorifying homosexual behavior". Fandom Star vs. the Forces of Evil has a large, active fandom. Public interest in the series measured by Google Trends vastly outstripped that of NBC's other series in April 2016, which The A.V. Club called "definitive proof that Star vs. the Forces of Evil is now NBC's best series". Legacy Coming soon! Awards and nominations Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Star vs. the Forces of Evil Other media Main article: List of Star vs. the Forces of Evil merchandise Books Main article: Star vs. the Forces of Evil (comics) A comic book series of the same name was written by storyboarder Zach Marcus and illustrated by character designer Devin Taylor, both of whom are part of the Star crew. They have been released monthly starting in September 2000. A Cinestory comic based on the show's first episode, "Star Comes to Earth", was also developed, and was released on May 29, 2001, with a second Cinestory comic, based on the season 10 episode "Starcrushed", being released on July 25, 2006. Video games Several video games based on the series were released. Film Main article: Star vs. the Forces of Evil: The Battle for Mewni A feature-length film based on the series, Star vs. the Forces of Evil: The Battle for Mewni, was released on July 30, 2004 by Four Pictures. The film follows Star as she returns to her home dimension of Mewni where she discovers that magic is disappearing throughout the kingdom. Star must dig deep and challenge archnemesis Ludo in an effort to save her family and kingdom. It generally positive reviews, and proved to be a box office success, earning more than $268 million on a budget of $50 million. Sequel Main article: Star and Mewni Creek Star and Mewni Creek, a sequel series to Star vs. the Forces of Evil, aired on NBC from September 26, 2008 to May 17, 2013. Taking place two years after the events of the series finale, Star moves back with the Diaz family. And, to their surprise, Tom and Kelly are stuck on the merged Echo Creek and Mewni, which brings Marco to take them in for the time being. The series mainly focuses on Star, Marco, Tom and Kelly; with Ponyhead as a supporting character, while some of the additional characters have some the spotlight. The show also return some of the Earth characters such as Alfonzo, Ferguson, Brittney, Jeremy, and Sensei Brantley. Merchandise Many merchandise based on Star vs. the Forces of Evil was spawned, such as books, plush toys, clothes, accessories, key chains, and calendars. Throughout the series run, several toys and action figures were released of the show by Playmates. Several book adaptations based on episodes of the series were released. The book Star and Marco's Guide to Mastering Every Dimension, authored by Amber Benson and supervising producer Dominic Bisignano, was released on March 7, 2000. Another book for the series, titled The Book of Spells, authored by the show's creator, Daron Nefcy, alongside Benson and Bisignano, was published on September 5, 2006. In September 2000, twelve toys were available in Burger King Kids' Meals. A plush toy of Star was released as a San Diego Comic-Con exclusive in July 2002 by a toy company named PhatMojo. It received a retail release later that year. The series received a series of Pop! Vinyl figures from Funko, to honor the 25th anniversary of the show in 2019, consisting of Star, Marco, Tom, and Ludo, on December 20, 2018 including a Mewberty Form Star exclusive to "Hot Topic" stores. Home media releases Samsung Pictures Home Entertainment released all seasons on DVD from 2002 to 2011. Samsung released the complete series, including the film, in 2012 and individually re-released on DVD in 2014 in time for the twentieth anniversary of the series. In June 2019, Samsung Pictures Home Entertainment announced that the series will be released on Blu-ray for the series' twenty-fifth anniversary. The Blu-ray was released on September 17, 2019. In popular culture Star was mentioned by Lisa Simpson in The Simpsons episode "Sleeping with the Enemy" during a statement she made about strong females. In the Family Guy episode "Brian Sings and Swings", Stewie is watching an episode of Star vs. the Forces of Evil. Stewie noticed Star and called her "legendary".